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Investment bankers from Barclays and Rothschild were appointed by the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) last month to oversee the sale, which more than 15,000 people have signed an online petition to oppose. Danny Alexander, the chief secretary to the Treasury, said during the summer that the Government hoped to raise 10bn from the sale of corporate and financial assets such as the student loan book by 2020. David Willetts said the sale would help balance the nation’s books Speaking in March, when the mortgage-style student loan auction was initiated, David Willetts, the universities and science minister, said: “Selling the remaining mortgage-style student loans will allow us to reduce public debt and maximise the value of one of the Government’s assets. “The private sector’s expertise makes it well-placed to collect this debt and the sale will also help the Student Loans Company (SLC) to concentrate on providing loans to current students.” The low recovery rate on the 1990s loans means the sale price is likely to be only in the tens of millions of pounds, reflecting the distressed nature of the debts, people close to the situation said on Sunday. The deal will come at a sensitive time, just weeks after Royal Mail was floated with a valuation of 3.3bn. Source: http://news.sky.com/story/1173070/student-loans-ministers-to-unveil-900m-sale

“$167,000,” Sam said. The Striblings pay about $800 a month toward their debt, which adds up to almost $10,000 a year, and with a 6 percent interest rate, that $167,000 debt is not shrinking. “The loans get bigger every year,” Sam said. And the Striblings’ story is far from unusual. “It is just a mess,” Jay Slivocka said. Slivocka graduated from University of North Texas. Source: http://www.myfoxdfw.com/story/24067269/college-graduates-struggle-with-student-loan-spiral

This summer, Congress passed a law tying interest rates on loans to the market. The law set rates for all the loans at different levels, but based them all on the 10-year U.S. Treasury rate and allowed rates to change each year. For Stafford loans, both the subsidized and unsubsidized, the interest rate is sites the Treasury rate plus 2.05%, with a cap of 8.25%. Graduate student loan rates are the Treasury rate plus 3.6%, with a cap of 9.5%, and the parent loans are the Treasury rate, plus 4.6%, with a cap of 10.5%. Source: http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2013/11/25/federal-student-loan-profit/3696009/

Government sells £900 million in student loans to debt collection company

Effectively subsidizing half of the agency’s total operations, the profits have enabled Sec. Duncan to reduce the Education Departments total cost to the smallest amount since 2001. The Education Department spent $40.9 billion in 2013, nearly a third less than 2012 and the lowest reported amount since the first year of George W. Bushs presidency, according to the Treasury Department. Student loan profits last year exceeded the amount of money for federal Pell Grants given to low-income college students, according to budget documents. Source: http://rt.com/usa/student-loans-government-profit-292/

Selling Off the Loan Book Would Be the Government’s Most Outrageous Attack on Students, So Why Aren’t the NUS More Concerned? A company called Erudio Student Loans was named as the successful bidder on Monday, and now owns the remaining 17% of mortgage style student loans taken out by those who began courses between the eight year period. Universities and Science Minister David Willetts said the price paid exceeds the estimated value of the remaining student loans, and added the private sector is “best placed” to collect the remaining debts. The sale of the remaining mortgage style student loan book represents good value for money, helping to reduce public sector net debt by 160m,” he said. “The private sector is well placed to maximise returns from the book which has a deteriorating value. Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/2013/11/25/student-loan-book-sold-160m-government_n_4336301.html?ir=UK+Politics

I would like to receive additional offers and information from The Independent I would like to receive additional offers and information sent by The Independent on behalf of carefully selected partners Terms and Conditions * I have read, understood and agree to be bound by the terms and conditions of Independent Digital News and Media Limited Registration Government sells 900 million in student loans to debt collection company Sale made as part of an effort to improve the nation’s finances Simon Read Simon Read Simon Read is Personal Finance Editor at The Independent. He edits the Saturday Your Money section as well as writing for the news and business pages of the Independent and i newspaper. Your friend’s email address Your email address Note: We do not store your email address(es) but your IP address will be logged to prevent abuse of this feature. Please read our Legal Terms & Policies Email Some 300,000 former students could soon face a barrage of fresh debt demands after the Government announced it was flogging student loans worth 890m to a private company, renowned for its persistent debt recovery practices. Erudio Student Loans has agreed to pay 160m for the loans, taken out by students between 1990 and 1998. Source: http://www.independent.co.uk/student/news/government-sells-900-million-in-student-loans-to-debt-collection-company-8961790.html

Dmitri Chavkerov believes that everybody has got the potential to achieve but they need to focus on the goal and cultivate the necessary skill sets through rigorous training to achieve the goal. “I used to run a lot when I was younger. One time, before I was about to go to another city in order to run a marathon, some chubby guy with a bunch of new age ideas asked me whether I have a goal for that marathon. I told him that I want to run it under 3 hours and 30 minutes. Source: http://money.msn.com/business-news/article.aspx?feed=PR&Date=20131119&ID=17123239

However, it upgraded its forecast for the currency bloc for 2013 from a contraction of 0.6% to a contraction of 0.4%. It said “weakness” in the euro zone banking system was a “major drag” on growth and warned that there is an increasing risk of deflation in the currency bloc. The euro shrugged off a report showing that the ZEW index of German economic sentiment rose to a four-year high this month. The ZEW index of German economic sentiment rose to 54.6 in November from October’s reading of 52.8. Source: http://www.nasdaq.com/article/forex-euro-little-changed-vs-dollar-in-subdued-trade-cm303081

The Melbourne Institutes Australian Leading Index m/m came out earlier today, up 0.1 percent in September. Reserve Bank of Australia assistant governor Guy Debelle has reiterated the central banks position that the Australian dollar remains at uncomfortably high levels. Speaking earlier in the day, Debelle also said that an early tapering by the US Fed of its $85 billion bond purchasing programme would have a good impact on the Australian economy as the move should help to weaken the AUD. Fed chairman Ben Bernanke said in a speech overnight UTC that the stimulus programme will continue at the same pace until labour market and inflation targets are reached, despite http://www.etftradingsignals.com the recent economic improvement. In the US today, the Bureau of Labor Statistics is due to release the October Consumer Price Index m/m at 13.30 UTC, which is expected to be unchanged from September. Source: http://invezz.com/news/forex/6936-Forex-AUD-USD-RBA-s-Debelle-reiterates-AUD-too-high

Forex: AUD/USD: RBA’s Debelle reiterates AUD too high

Committee members may though have been divided over the Bank of Englands central forecasts released last week in the Quarterly Inflation Report. The MPC now expects unemployment to hit the seven percent threshold in Q3 2015, a year earlier than the BoEs initial estimate in August (see left chart below). The BoE readily admits that there is considerable uncertainty surrounding its central projections, with the inflation report underlining a range of views on the committee over the extent to which productivity gains will trim the jobless rate. If it transpires from the minutes that some MPC members see the fall in unemployment happening faster than their colleagues, theres likely to be a responsive strengthening of sterling against the euro. Source: http://invezz.com/news/forex/6928-forex-eurgbp-mpc-minutes-may-paint-a-bigger-picture

counterpart on Wednesday, despite positive inflation data out of New Zealand, as comments by Federal Reserve Chairman sent the greenback broadly higher. NZD/USD hit 0.8326 during late Asian trade, the session low; the pair subsequently consolidated at 0.8337, shedding 0.43%. The pair was likely to find support at 0.8268, the low of November 15 and resistance at 0.8415, the high of November 6. Official data earlier showed that producer price inflation input rose 2.2% in the third quarter, exceeding expectations for a 0.6% uptick, after a 0.6% rise in the three months to June. Source: http://www.nasdaq.com/article/forex-nzdusd-lower-on-bernanke-comments-cm303604

What these statistics almost conclusively establish is that a larger fall in the rupees value results in higher profits of exchange companies. But what is even more important is that its actually the volatility in exchange rates and just the year-on-year fall in the rupees value that gives them a chance to make bigger profits, says a central banker. Perhaps that is why executives of exchange companies are optimistic about having made increased profits in FY13, when the exchange rates remained extremely volatile, but the rupee declined by just 5.4 per cent. Meanwhile, operations of exchange companies are now being monitored more minutely by the SBP than ever before, as central bankers suspect the involvement of some of them in the smuggling of foreign currencies out of Pakistan and illegal electronic forex transfers abroad. The reporting requirements have been tightened. The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) and the SBP have now agreed on joint vigilance at airports and other exit points to check the smuggling of foreign currencies out of the country. Source: http://dawn.com/news/1056928/forex-firms-thrive-on-volatile-exchange-rates

(NYSE: ETP) reported solid third-quarter earnings last week. The company is successfully digesting an enormous amount of merger and acquisition (M&A) activity. In addition to getting a handle on a stable of new assets, significant rationalization and restructuring has been ongoing. Investors are paid a 6.9% distribution.Deutsche Bank has a $60 price target for the stock, and the consensus target is at $57. The stock closed Monday at $52.27. Source: http://www.marketwatch.com/story/top-stocks-to-buy-as-pipeline-and-mlp-payouts-exceed-estimates-2013-11-12

UBS Top Stocks to Buy for 2014: GE, GM, Citigroup and Six More

Just add items to create a watchlist now: Add By 24/7 Wall St. While the past two years were all about getting the house back in order, the UBS equity strategy team thinks 2014 is all about earnings growth. That should be sweet music to the ears of investors. The team sees earnings growth of 14% in 2014 and 9% in 2015, as economic growth accelerates and global profit margins recover some of the 1.5% fall since 2010. Source: http://www.marketwatch.com/story/ubs-top-stocks-to-buy-for-2014-ge-gm-citigroup-and-six-more-2013-11-13

‘Tis The Season To Buy These 13 Retail Stocks

And the same goes for retail stocks, Stovall said. Based on investment recommendations from S&P Capital IQs qualitative STARS and quantitative Fair Value investment recommendation systems, we believe there are 12 retailers that still remain on the bargain rack. Those 12 stocks all which have a buy or strong buy rating from S&P Capital are: Advance Auto Parts Advance Auto Parts , AutoNation AutoNation , Bed Bath and Beyond, Carmax, Nordstrom Nordstrom , PetSmart, Ross Stores, Staples, Target, Urban Outfitters, CVS and Walmart. Rounding out the list of 13 retail stocks to buy right now is Best Buy, which on Monday was upgraded from neutral to buy by UBS analyst Michael Lasser. In a research note, Lasser said that the electronics retailer has a forward P/E moving from 5x to 16x in the next twelve months and indicated that there is reason to be optimistic about Best Buys prospects thanks to cost-savings measures (that will eventually save $1 billion) and vendor relationships with giants like Google and Amazon, both of which have recently installed kiosks in select Best Buy stores. There is potential for greater asset productivity as the vendor shops couldincrease sales by improving hottest stocks to buy now the shopping experience and creating a cleanerstore layout. Source: http://www.forbes.com/sites/maggiemcgrath/2013/11/11/tis-the-season-to-buy-these-13-retail-stocks/

How to Buy Stocks in a Rising or Falling Market

First, if you buy a stock at 23 cents and it goes to 80 cents then youll make a 248% return. But if you buy a stock at 40 cents and it goes to 80 cents, youll only make a 100% return. Thats a big difference. But secondly, small-cap investing is all about momentum and expectations. It may sound odd, but if a small-cap stock takes off too quickly the company may struggle to satisfy investor expectations. Source: http://countingpips.com/forex-news/2013/11/how-to-buy-stocks-in-a-rising-or-falling-market/

As interest accrues, it may be added to the total balance of your loan if left unpaid. As a recent graduate, you may want to consider making student loan interest payments during your grace period to save money on the total cost of your loan. Repayment Options Depending on the types of loans you have, you will have different repayment options . Federal student loans offer great benefits, including flexible repayment options. Some options include tying your monthly payment to your income, extending your payments over a longer period of time, or combining multiple loans into one. Source: http://www.ed.gov/blog/2013/11/5-things-you-need-to-know-about-your-student-loans/

So right now, and heading into December, scores of former students will have to begin repaying their student loans. No matter what your career, paying off student loans is hard enough on an entry-level salary. But the process can be even more stressful if you get billed the wrong amount for your student loans. What types of errors might you encounter, and how are such mistakes possible? Your payments may be misapplied or mistakenly credited to the wrong account at any given time, particularly if you have multiple student loans. Source: http://www.ebony.com/career-finance/how-to-handle-student-loan-errors-888

Why it’s so hard to settle student loan debt

Some borrowers miss out on this benefit because they put their loans on a military deferral, which halts payments while they are on active duty. Instead of stopping payments, troops should explore options to lower the amount due each month, such as income-based, income-contingent and pay-as-you-earn repayment plans. Each option bases monthly payments on annual earnings and family size. The reduced amount still counts as a full payment for public service loan forgiveness, even if the total amount due each month is zero dollars. Service members who leave the military before the 10-year mark can retain this benefit, as long as they move to another qualifying position. Source: http://finance.yahoo.com/news/federal-programs-student-loan-relief-151022382.html

Student loan rates will feed federal profits

Private lenders have to go to court to get wage garnishments and can’t seize tax refunds or government benefits. Private student loans also are subject to state statutes of limitation that limit how long lenders can sue borrowers over unpaid debt. There are no statutes of limitation on (source) federal student loans. Borrowers, however, can unknowingly extend the statutes and invite lawsuits by making a single payment on an old debt or even acknowledging a debt is theirs, which is why Kantrowitz recommends hiring a lawyer to pursue a private student loan settlement. Settlement certainly isn’t an easy way out. Source: http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/11/04/us-weston-studentloans-idUSBRE9A30Q920131104

Most grace periods are only six months. Shutterstock Enlarge photo Summary After several months of enjoying post-college life, spring college graduates now need to start paying off those dreaded student loans. Most grace periods are only six months. SALT LAKE CITY After several months of enjoying post-college life, recent graduates need to start paying off those dreaded student loans. Typical federal loans have a six-month grace period, so now its time for spring 2013 graduates to crunch some numbers, choose repayment plans and start pinching pennies to get out of debt. (Debt) limits your choices. Source: http://www.deseretnews.com/article/865590273/Experts-offer-advice-about-paying-off-those-dreaded-student-loans.html?pg=all

Experts offer advice about paying off those dreaded student loans

They ranged from just freezing rates at the lower rate for a year to a complete overhaul of the system. But in the process of coming to a compromise plan, it became clear that whatever was passed had to be revenue-neutral, several experts said. That meant the plan had to at least match the profit levels projected by the CBO for what would happen if rates had increased on July 1. Making that profit stay shifted a lot of the burden onto parents and graduate students, Thompson said. “Unfortunately, this is a permanent change,” she said. Source: http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2013/08/25/student-loan-rates-will-feed-fed-profits/2696241/

Fundamentals are critical to the benchmarks next move. The most significant cues for what truly matter to the dollar risk trends and stimulus schedules arent due until the end of the week. The US 3Q GDP (due Thursday at 13:30 GMT) and October NFPs (Friday at 13:30 GMT) reports are beacons for FX traders, and there will be considerable hesitation to building into trends (bullish or bearish, risk on or risk off, Taper this site earlier or later) until the data clarifies probabilities for the crowd. Meanwhile, the event risk from this opening session offered a mixed picture. Data (factory orders and New York manufacturing activity) was lower tier, but the Treasurys upgraded quarterly borrowing estimate ($266 billion) reminds us we likely have another debt stand off early near year. More immediate, multiple Fed officials spoke; and it seems they are trying to desensitize the market to a Taper. Source: http://finance.yahoo.com/news/forex-dollar-ends-longest-bull-032600309.html

No doubt forex investors will be leaning heavily on Fridays forthcoming nonfarm payrolls report to reveal all. Risk of Currency Wars Loom Earlier this morning, Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas President, Richard Fisher, (a hawk, voter in 2014) said in a Sydney speech that the Fed will have to slow quantitative easing at some point adding he doesnt see the Feds balance sheet growth exceeding market estimates. He also said that the fiscal blow-up risk was not part of the Feds September decision not to taper. Employment numbers have been the Feds mantra and this weeks job report will outline policy for the next quarter. Source: http://www.forbes.com/sites/deanpopplewell/2013/11/04/dollar-retreats-to-start-busy-forex-week/

Spanish October Unemployment Change is due out at 08.00 UTC today and is expected to show a rise of 31,300. The European Union Economic Forecast for the next two years is due out at 10.00 UTC along with the Eurozones Producer Price Index m/m for September (expected to rise by 0.3 percent). ISMs US Non-Manufacturing Purchasing Managers Index for October is due out at 15.00 UTC. Analysts expect a slight decline from the prior 54.4 points. The IBD/TIPP Economic Optimism comes out at the same time and is forecast to rise to 41.1 points for this month from the prior 38.4. Todays resistances: 1.3525, 1.3555 and 1.3585. Source: http://invezz.com/news/forex/6550-Forex-EUR-USD-holding-to-rising-channel-so-far-today

It hit a seven-week high of 80.930 on Monday. Several U.S. central bankers said on Monday the Fed was in no hurry to taper its bond-buying stimulus. Teppei Ino, analyst for Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ in Singapore, said the euro’s drop should be seen as a corrective move after many traders had piled up long positions. “If you ask whether there will be a shift to a trend of dollar strength and euro weakness, I don’t think that will be the case.” The dollar fell 0.4 percent to 98.23 yen. Source: http://uk.reuters.com/article/2013/11/05/markets-forex-idUKL5N0IQ1E220131105

Forex – NZD/USD almost unchanged, eyes on N.Z. jobs data

The timing of the euro’s drop against the dollar in Asia seemed to roughly coincide with comments from Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas President Richard Fisher. Speaking at a conference of business economists in Sydney, Fisher said he was concerned that corporate credit spreads have narrowed too much and added that he does not see the Fed’s balance sheet rising to $6 trillion or more. The Australian dollar edged higher, supported by stronger than expected retail sales. Another factor supporting the Aussie dollar was upbeat Chinese data on Sunday showing China’s services sector expanding at its fastest pace in 13 months in October. Source: http://uk.reuters.com/article/2013/11/04/markets-forex-idUKL5N0IP0N420131104

FOREX-Euro hovers near six-week low vs dollar on ECB easing bets

The pair was likely to find support at 0.8193, the low of October 30 and resistance at 0.8338, the high of October 25. Comments by Fed officials on Monday indicated that the bank is likely to keep its stimulus program in place for some time to come. Federal Reserve Bank of Boston President Eric Rosengren said bank should keep its asset purchase program in place until there is “compelling evidence of a sustainable recovery making satisfactory progress toward full employment.” The kiwi was higher against the Australian dollar with AUD/NZD edging down 0.19%, to hit 1.1454. Also Tuesday, the Reserve Bank of Australia held its benchmark interest rate at a record-low 2.5%, in line with market expectations. Commenting on the decision, RBA Chairman Glenn Stevens said the Aussie remained “uncomfortably high” and that “a lower level of the exchange rate is likely to be needed to achieve balanced growth in the economy”. Source: http://www.nasdaq.com/article/forex-nzdusd-almost-unchanged-eyes-on-nz-jobs-data-cm296364

In a statement, Nasdaq OMX Group ( NDAQ ) said its Global Index Data Service experienced a “brief disruption of service” Tuesday afternoon and recovered at 12:37 p.m. ET. “The disruption was caused by a human error performing an operational function which resulted in the incorrect delivery of data to the index disruption system,” Nasdaq said. The exchange said the issue didn’t impact its index calculation system nor its equity exchange operations. Individual stocks that trade on Nasdaq such as Apple ( AAPL ) and Microsoft ( MSFT ) didnt appear to be affected by the outage. Still, a spokesman from the Securities and Exchange Commission said the agency is “monitoring developments as appropriate” and has been “in contact with market participants as is our standard practice.” Nasdaq sent an alert to traders at 12:09 p.m. Source: http://www.foxbusiness.com/markets/2013/10/29/nasdaq-suffers-data-service-outage-impacting-indexes-options/

CTC, Rostelecom The Bloomberg Russia-US gauge slipped 0.4 percent to 104.16, paring its advance this month to 7.7 percent. CTC Media Inc. (CTCM) , the Nasdaq-listed Russian television company, rallied 2.6 percent to $12.86, the highest level since April 25. The stock has climbed 22 percent this month, making it the best performer on the Bloomberg-Russia gauge. VimpelCom is the second-biggest gainer on the index this month, followed by OAO Rostelecom (ROSYY) , which has increased 17 percent after two months of declines. Norilsk, the worlds biggest producer of nickel and palladium, said its board of directors recommended paying an interim dividend of 220.7 rubles per share for the period of January through September 2013. Source: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-10-29/nasdaq-addition-seen-boosting-vimpelcom-russia-overnight.html

Nasdaq rises on restart; S&P 500 near record

We are very happy to know that our stock will continue to trade on the NASDAQ exchange, Lime CEO John ORourke says in a statement. It has been a tough 18 months for our stockholders, our employees and our loyal customers. Regaining full compliance with NASDAQs requirements for continued listing is another important step in the return to normal operations for the company.” Lime’s operations have not been normal for a long time. The Huntersville-based company is in the midst of reorganizing, seeking to strengthen its executive and financial teams to head off future financial issues. Cost-cutting and divesting businesses have left the company at 160 employees, down from 274 last year. Source: http://www.bizjournals.com/charlotte/blog/power_city/2013/10/nasdaq-has-sweet-news-for-lime-energy.html

CFFEX Chairman Zhang Shenfeng and NASDAQ OMX Vice Chairman Sandy Frucher signed the MOU. “In recent years, CFFEX has been exploring its global strategy, which includes learning from the experience of overseas markets, strengthening cooperation with them and exploring development opportunities,” said Zhang Shenfeng, Chairman, CFFEX. “CFFEX and NASDAQ OMX have previously cooperated, and this new MOU can be seen as an opportunity to explore other areas of cooperation for the mutual benefit of each exchange.” According to the MOU, CFFEX and NASDAQ OMX will carry out extensive cooperation regarding technology, consultation, information sharing, staff training and explore opportunities for cooperation to promote collaborative business projects. “We are excited to sign the MOU with CFFEX, hoping that this will strengthen the relationship between NASDAQ OMX and the China financial futures market to create more cooperation in the market,” said Sandy Frucher, Vice Chairman, NASDAQ OMX. “We will continue exploring more cooperative business opportunities between CFFEX and NASDAQ OMX for ongoing mutual benefits and common development.” About China Financial Futures Exchange: With the approval of the State Council and the authorization of China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC), China Financial Futures Exchange (CFFEX) was jointly founded by Shanghai Futures Exchange, Zhengzhou Commodity Exchange, Dalian Commodity Exchange, Shanghai Stock Exchange and Shenzhen Stock Exchange on September 8, 2006 in Shanghai. The establishment of CFFEX is of strategic significance to deepening reform of the financial market, perfecting the financial market system, and exercising the function of the financial market. Source: http://online.wsj.com/article/PR-CO-20131029-906375.html

In its accompanying policy statement, however, the Fed is likely to keep its options open about any tapering of its purchases before the end of the year. The decision is expected after the meeting ends on Wednesday. Click to Play Google joins smartwatch race Google’s smartwatch is in late-stage development and the device, which will run on Android, will be integrated with Google Now, the companys digital assistant. The WSJ’s Yun-Hee Kim speaks with Eva Dou about what to expect from Google’s smartwatch. In September, market participants expected the policy makers to start scaling back the $85-billion-a-month asset-purchase program, but the central bank surprised by waiting for more evidence go!! of an economic recovery before pulling the tapering trigger. With [Chairman] Ben Bernanke now in the autumn of his tenure at the Fed and no press release scheduled for this meeting, the overwhelming consensus is that nothing will happen on the taper front. Source: http://articles.marketwatch.com/story/us-stocks-gain-as-pfizer-boosts-dow-2013-10-29?link=MW_story_latest_news

This maximizes late fees and can exacerbate the negative impact of a single late payment to the borrowers credit profile, Chopra said. Borrowers also encountered problems when their loans were transferred to another servicing company. These complaints included lost paperwork, processing errors that resulted in late fees and interruptions to routine communication, such as billing statements. For this report, the CFPB analyzed more than 3,800 complaints about private student loans received between Oct. 1, 2012, and Sept. Source: http://www.today.com/money/student-loan-borrowers-face-payment-processing-pitfalls-8C11415970

Student Loans Discharged in Bankruptcy

It can take two decades to pay off a student loan, especially if using the extended payment plan. Many young people have found themselves in a world of trouble and debt now that they have graduated and their first real job may not be paying the bills. They don’t want to default on their student loans. Some are turning to drastic measures like selling plasma or working extra part-time jobs at minimum wage just to make the monthly bills. Others are using the world’s online marketplace to hold a virtual garage sale 24/7, and making money doing it. Where do you find things to sell on eBay? Source: http://www.examiner.com/article/how-to-pay-off-student-loans-learn-to-sell-unwanted-junk-on-ebay

Under Section 523(a)(8), student loans are not dischargeable unless they impose an undue hardship on the debtor, which the debtor bears the burden of proving by a preponderance of the evidence. While undue hardship is not defined by the Bankruptcy Code, the BAP said that in the Eighth Circuit, a totality of the circumstances test is used. The BAP said that this test has three factors, which are: (1) the debtors past, present, and reasonably reliable future financial resources; (2) the debtors reasonable and necessary living expenses; and (3) any other relevant facts and circumstances. The debtor stipulated that her income, which fluctuated due to seasonal hours of operation at one of her jobs, was between $1,379 and $2,040 in 2012. She argued that her income was unlikely to increase in the future and testified that despite sending out more than 200 job applications she had been unable to find full-time employment commensurate with her education level. However, the bankruptcy court found the debtor to be articulate, poised, intelligent, and quite capable and concluded that she had ample to time to find the financial resources to pay NCSLT in the future. Source: http://www.examiner.com/article/student-loans-discharged-bankruptcy

The entire process of paying off loans early is fraught with confusion on where the money goes after the borrower turns it in to the servicer. Borrowers often have several loans that they consolidate into a single account. The loans have different balances and interest rates. It would make financial sense for the borrower to pay off the loans president Obama on student loans with the highest interest rate first. But even when they send payments with explicit instructions to that effect, the servicer often does not follow the instructions, applying the payments in any way it sees fit. Source: http://www.salon.com/2013/10/23/paging_elizabeth_warren_student_loan_providers_are_likely_screwing_you_over/